My last post about our adoption was right as we left the plan of adopting from South Korea and were looking elsewhere. We set our sights on Taiwan and felt that was the right place. I had peace, it felt right and then we were told I misread the qualifications and we did not qualify for that country. I was blown away and very upset with God. I felt He had led us to Taiwan and then closed the door. I didn't, and in many ways, still don't understand that. We had some hard discussions and figured we would just have another biological child and then adopt down the road when we were older. I was done with the ups and downs of the unknowns.
Then I happened upon a blog of someone that posted some orphan statistics. I realized that we HAD to do something. It may not be easy, quick or comfortable but there are so many children going to bed tonight without getting hugged, kissed, rocked and loved. It's not right. Not everyone is up for adoption, but we are.
We began searching all over the world and found we qualified for 4 countries (we qualified for a few more but they required extensive stay in country and we were unable to do that) Out of those 4 we chose Ethiopia. It didn't take long to discover that the world of Ethiopian adoption is very different from that of South Korea. Unethical practices are a lot harder to spot and can occur at a much higher rate. We did a lot of research and took 4 months to decide on an agency. We have settled on Adoption Associates of Michigan.
We are towards the end of our home study. Trying to finish a home study while both parents are working full time is not a walk in the park. We have started our dossier (a massive amount of paperwork for the adoptive country) but still have a long way to go on that. Once our paperwork is done, it will be sent overseas to Ethiopia and our official wait will begin. The projected timeline for a child 0-18 months old is a little over a year.
Adoption is not for the faint of heart. I think we are underestimating how hard the next year waiting will be. Ethiopia requires 2 trips. One trip to meet the child and attend court and the 2nd trip a couple months later to bring them home. How on earth I am going to meet our child and then fly back to the United States with out them is beyond my comprehension. It is also not cheap. All said and done it will be $30,000. We are lucky to have saved over the last year. On top of that, I was offered a 12 weeks long-term substitute position that is going towards our adoption as well. However, that won't be enough. We will have a fundraiser in the next couple weeks and possibly a few more as we head down this road. I believe fundraising can be a tricky subject because we are choosing this despite not being able to pay for it. However, we believe that God is leading us down this road. James 1: 27 says, "27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." Maybe you don't believe in God but that doesn't make you heartless. Humanity itself calls us to help our world, you may choose not to adopt, but instead choose to help someone else to do so. At a Halloween party I was talking to someone that donates to a program that funds micro loans to people in third world countries. He is looking beyond his needs to help provide for others. You don't have to help us. It can be any other adoptive family, I don't know many people that have $30,000 ready to go to bring home a child. You could choose to help someone locally that is down on their luck and needs some help. In fact, I know of someone that will be in need of some furniture and baby items in the next few months if you have any extra of that laying around. Anyway, God may not be calling you to adopt but he does call us to love our neighbor as ourselves. For us, right now that means loving a child halfway across this world as though they are our sweet Chloe.
Your prayers and encouragement are welcomed. :)
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